The iconic bubble-canopied Bell 47 helicopter is coming back. Scott’s-Bell 47 announced yesterday at Heli-Expo that it will build new Bell 47 helicopters, dubbed the 47-GT6, powered by the Rolls-Royce RR300 engine. The aircraft will be built from scratch, not remanufactured, and will be based on the 47G-3B-2A type design, taking advantage of the 3,200-pound max gross weight with external load that model was originally designed for. Internal useful load will be 1,400 pounds and external load 1,650 pounds.
HAI Convention News
March 5, 2013 - 7:30pm
American Eurocopter chose Heli-Expo ’13 as the venue to announce the appointment of Brian K. Reid as director of support and service sales. As such Reid will oversee and grow the marketing efforts of American Eurocopter’s customer support and service division, which focuses on the aftermarket segment. Reid has a background in helicopter manufacturing, having held positions in business development, sales, marketing and management.
March 5, 2013 - 7:30pm
In a ceremony at the Sikorsky exhibit yesterday, the company celebrated its 90th anniversary in homage to its founder and aviation pioneer Igor Sikorsky. The crowd of some 300 at Booth No. C5028 listened to Sikorsky’s story in his own words, words that still resonate in the industry and that included the admonishment, “In aviation, use the word ‘impossible’ with the greatest care.” Sikorsky president Mick Maurer concluded the ceremony by offering his own view of the future, saying the obligation of Sikorsky over the next 90 years is to continue to push the boundaries.
March 5, 2013 - 7:15pm
American Eurocopter chose Heli-Expo ’13 as the venue to announce the appointment of Brian K. Reid as director of support and service sales. As such Reid will oversee and grow the marketing efforts of American Eurocopter’s customer support and service division, which focuses on the aftermarket segment. Reid has a background in helicopter manufacturing, having held positions in business development, sales, marketing and management.
March 5, 2013 - 7:00pm
Air Medical Group Holdings placed an order for 30 Bell 206L4 and 407GX singles yesterday here at Heli-Expo. The company is the parent of helicopter EMS providers Air Evac Lifeteam, Med-Trans and EagleMed. No breakdown of the precise number of each type or the value of the order was provided by Air Medical Group. The three companies operate a fleet of Bell 206 LongRangers (Air Evac Lifeteam), Bell 407s and Eurocopter EC135s (Med-Trans) and Eurocopters and Beechcraft airplanes (EagleMed).
March 5, 2013 - 7:00pm
The AgustaWestland AW169 represents a new generation of helicopter technology, and the multinational companies that designed and manufactured its innovative thermoplastic composite horizontal tailplane: Fokker Aerostructures (Netherlands), AgustaWestland (Italy), TenCate Advanced Composites (Netherlands) and Ticona (Germany), are being celebrated with the prestigious JEC innovation award, which will be presented at the opening ceremony of the JEC Composites Show, to be held
March 5, 2013 - 6:30pm
Avincis Group has taken delivery of the first of its record order of 16 new Sikorsky S-92s. The order, placed in December 2011, is the largest single purchase of S-92s ever made, according to the UK-based operator. The Avincis fleet is expected to provide offshore oil and gas worker transportation and serve in a search-and-rescue role.
March 5, 2013 - 6:15pm
Kaman Aerospace, perhaps best known for its iconic K-Max heavy-lift helicopter, is at Heli-Expo emphasizing its newly reorganized identity as “One Kaman.”
“We’re a company that can handle anything from metal and composite structures to complete systems design, as well as manufacture of tooling–our own and that of our customers,” said Gary Tenison, Kaman Aerospace v-p of business development and marketing.
March 5, 2013 - 5:30pm
AgustaWestland’s new CEO, Daniele Romiti, met the press here at Heli-Expo Monday night just days after his appointment by parent company Finmeccanica.
March 5, 2013 - 5:15pm
The destination is London, England; the dates are Sept. 24-26, 2013, and if you ask the organizers (Reed Exhibitions in conjunction with the European Helicopter Association), they’ll tell you that interest in HeliTech is running 10 percent above last year.
